Arshad Shaikh reports on the proposed change in IT rules by the government to check and regulate fake news. The move upset civil society and the media fraternity as it envisaged assigning the government’s Press Information Bureau (PIB) as the sole adjudicator for “fact-checking”. Thankfully, due to sustained opposition by the concerned stakeholders, the move has been stalled pending further consultations. The brazen manner in which the media has acquiesced to the diktats of the “powers that be” for favourable headline management, the attempts to tweak data privacy laws and now the imposition of a “sarkari” fact-checking agency – all cry out for an alert citizenry that is zealous to protect its freedom and civil liberties. Deadwood is easy to burn and reduce to ashes.

Arshad Shaikh analyses the recently released Indian supplement of the Oxfam (Oxford Committee for Famine Relief) Report about inequality in India. Oxfam, an international charity focused on poverty alleviation, released its global report coinciding with the start of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland. These reports by Oxfam (a British-founded charity by Quakers and Oxford academics) quickly grab headlines because of their startling findings and crisp captions. Oxfam has successfully managed to bring back the spotlight on wealth inequality and reignite the debate about the negative externalities of capitalism.

By Ramzy Baroud Once more, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) will offer a legal opinion on…